Rep. Richard Neal, quoting Ronald Reagan, makes case for expanding earned income, child tax credit
SPRINGFIELD — Research suggests expanding the Earned Income Tax Credit and the Child Tax Credit, like U.S. Rep. Richard E. Neal wants to do, would boost 1.9 million Massachusetts families, giving a quarter of the state’s population tax cuts or refunds averaging $1,820 in 2020.
“And the best part about it is that it is an incentive to work,” said Neal, a Springfield Democrat and chairman of the powerful House Ways and Means Committee.
Neal spoke Tuesday during a gathering at Valley Venture Mentors and the Springfield Innovation Center in Springfield, where the Massachusetts Budget & Policy Center, a Boston-based think tank, released its most recent study on the tax credits. The meeting was organized by the Economic Development Council of Western Massachusetts, Springfield Works and Children’s HealthWatch of Boston.